What’s in a hat? White House merchandise room includes ‘Trump 2028’ caps

Following Donald Trump hosting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House this week, in order to advance peace talks to end the war in Ukraine, one detail caught the internet’s eye...

Pictures revealed that Trump had set up his very own gift shop in a corner of the West Wing, to better peddle his MAGA merchandise.

The concept isn’t new, as the White House has had an official gift shop for visitors since 1950. However, Trump’s MAGA corner is a new addition.

Previously, Trump was seen showing off his collection to Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev, who was in the US earlier this month to sign an agreement with the Armenian leader to end their decades-old conflict.

Eagle-eyed social media users noticed cufflinks, scarves, water bottles and more red caps – including one that read “Trump Was Right About Everything” and “Trump 2028”.

The merch room then when viral when a Trump aide, Margo Martin, shared a photograph of the president proudly showing off the area to the world leaders this week, even displaying a "4 More Years" hat to Zelenskyy and French President Emmanuel Macron.

It wasn’t clear from the images what Zelenskyy and Macron’s reactions were to the MAGA store and its merch, but the internet quickly weighed in...  

Online reactions called the move “beyond tacky”, “embarrassing” and one X user commented: “Imagine if Churchill went to the US during WW2, trying to defend against a shared opponent.. And they stopped for a merch flex break!”

Someone did suggest that the leaders get 10 per cent off...

Beyond the jokes and criticism, the items still had people wondering whether it was clear sign that Trump is teasing running for a third term. After all, Trump was heard telling Aliyev as he brandished the "Trump 2028" cap that "everybody wants me to run, including us."

This left some of his supporters both thrilled and confused, as well as many Trump haters worried as Trump has flip-flopped on the matter...

Despite the 22nd Amendment of the US Constitution not allowing anyone from serving as president for more than two terms (meaning Trump will be ineligible to stand again at the next election), Trump stated in March that there were "methods" to surpass the Constitutional restriction.

Then, he told NBC News in May that he wasn't looking for a third term: "I'm looking to have four great years and turn it over to somebody, ideally a great Republican, a great Republican to carry it forward," he said, suggesting Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio could be potential successors.

So, what does the 2028 hat tell us?

Well, it’s not new, as the Trump Store website has been selling the caps since April (for $50 apiece - €43 - with the product description “Make a statement with this Made in America Trump 2028 hat”), as well as T-shirts which read “Trump 2028 (Rewrite the Rules).”

The president's son Eric was even pictured wearing the hat, which included the message: "The future looks bright!"

Bright for some, but constitutionally complex if you consider the political niceties.

Amending the constitution would require a two-thirds approval majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, as well as approval from three-quarters of the country's state-level governments.

Trump's Republican Party controls both chambers of Congress but does not have the majorities needed.

Many Trump supporters frequently mention Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was elected four times (and died three months into his fourth term, in April 1945). The thing is that the two-term limit on US presidents had not been written into law at that time, and Roosevelt's extended time at the White House led to the law in the 22nd Amendment in 1951.

Others claim that the loopholes for Trump coming back exist, arguing that the 22nd Amendment only explicitly bans someone being "elected" to more than two presidential terms and does not mention "succession". Therefore, Trump could be the vice-presidential running-mate to another candidate in the 2028 election and if they win and the candidate immediately resigns, Trump returns by succession.

Puts the show into perspective, don't it?

Then there are those who favour the “not consecutive” argument, which states that since Trump won in 2016, lost in 2020 and won again in 2024, he is eligible to run again in 2028.

It’s all conjecture at this point, but what is certain is that the “Trump 2028” hats are yet another example of Trump as the salesman, as he has never shied away from a marketing opportunity, no matter how crass or credibility-staining.

Whether it’s selling bibles (read more about those here), silver coins ("The ONLY OFFICIAL coin designed by me"), luxury watches (from TheBestWatchesOnEarth LLC), cryptocurrency exchange ("We're embracing the future with crypto and leaving the slow and outdated big banks behind") and Gibson guitars which lead to cease and desist letters, the sheer amount of merch is staggering and has been labelled by some as "beyond parody".

The end stretch of the election cycle last year even saw the Trump team up the ante with an onslaught of Trump-hawked items. There was no precedent for this level of election monetization, with The New York Times saying at the time that Trump's branded sales were part of an "extraordinary effort to mix his personal finances with his bid to return to political power."  

According to Forbes, Trump could have made up to $315m from ‘$TRUMP’ cryptocurrency since its launch in January, and according to Trump's most recent financial disclosure report, he made $57,355,532 from his stake in the cryptocurrency platform World Liberty Financial, $2.8m from 'Trump Watches', and $3m from his Save America coffee table book. 

And it never stops. Trump’s latest addition to his personal line of merchandise? A branded perfume and cologne that will set you back $249 (€211) - a fragrance that was labelled as “too embarrassing for words".

Still, embarrassing business ventures aside, as long as Trump's merch corner in the West Wing stands, you can bet that doubts will continue to linger on whether he will be able to leave the White House at the end of his second term - at the ripe age of 82 years old.

Should he refuse to bow out gracefully (and constitutionally) and not exit through the gift shop, he’s got the merch ready.